Overall
- Battle Creek
- 90.5
- Beaumont-Port Arthur
- 90.0
Diff -0.5 RPP
Battle Creek vs Beaumont-Port Arthur
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Beaumont-Port Arthur is 0.5% less expensive than Battle Creek.
0.5% less expensive
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX is 0.5% less expensive than Battle Creek, MI on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 90.0 vs 90.5). A $100,000 salary in Battle Creek buys about the same as $99,453 in Beaumont-Port Arthur; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 90.5 (Battle Creek) vs 90.0 (Beaumont-Port Arthur)
- $100k in Battle Creek ≈ $99,453 purchasing power in Beaumont-Port Arthur
- Services drives the gap (-11.9 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair MI:TX 90.5→90.0
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE MI × TX
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- PP-PAR PP near-par
Instrument codes from this pair's BEA Regional Price Parities (overall · goods · services · rents · national benchmark 100 · purchasing-power conversion), not a ranking or recommendation.
Battle Creek
90.5
Cost Index
Beaumont-Port Arthur
90.0
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Battle Creek, MI and Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.5 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Beaumont-Port Arthur is 11.9 points lower. But rents and goods move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Comparable population context is incomplete for this pair, so no market-scale explanation is inferred from the price indexes.
Both metros remain below the U.S. benchmark of 100. This comparison chooses between two below-average price levels; “more expensive” here does not mean nationally expensive.
For a service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Battle Creek to $99,453 in Beaumont-Port Arthur, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Battle Creek
- 93.7
- Beaumont-Port Arthur
- 93.8
Diff +0.0 RPP
Services
- Battle Creek
- 95.0
- Beaumont-Port Arthur
- 83.1
Diff -11.9 RPP
Rents
- Battle Creek
- 61.0
- Beaumont-Port Arthur
- 70.9
Diff +9.9 RPP
| Category | Battle Creek | Beaumont-Port Arthur | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 90.5 | 90.0 | -0.5 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 93.8 | +0.0 |
| Services | 95.0 | 83.1 | -11.9 |
| Rents | 61.0 | 70.9 | +9.9 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Battle Creek 90.5
Beaumont-Port Arthur 90.0
Goods
Battle Creek 93.7
Beaumont-Port Arthur 93.8
Services
Battle Creek 95.0
Beaumont-Port Arthur 83.1
Rents
Battle Creek 61.0
Beaumont-Port Arthur 70.9
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Battle Creek would need to be in Beaumont-Port Arthur for the same purchasing power:
| In Battle Creek | In Beaumont-Port Arthur | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,727 | $-273 |
| $75,000 | $74,590 | $-410 |
| $100,000 | $99,453 | $-547 |
| $150,000 | $149,180 | $-820 |
$ in Battle Creek = in Beaumont-Port Arthur
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (90.5 → 90.0), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Beaumont-Port Arthur more expensive than Battle Creek?
Beaumont-Port Arthur is 0.5% less expensive than Battle Creek. The overall cost index is 90.0 vs 90.5 (national average = 100).
What salary in Beaumont-Port Arthur equals $100K in Battle Creek?
A $100,000 salary in Battle Creek has the same purchasing power as $99,453 in Beaumont-Port Arthur. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Battle Creek and Beaumont-Port Arthur?
Rents in Battle Creek are indexed at 61.0 while Beaumont-Port Arthur is at 70.9 (national average = 100). Beaumont-Port Arthur has higher rents.
Data sources
- BEA Regional Price Parities (RPP), the cost-of-living indices shown on this page
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS), gross-rent observations behind the rents component
- BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI), goods and services price relatives
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), labor-driven services component
- HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR), 40th-percentile rent cross-reference
Every figure on PlainCost is rendered directly from BEA Regional Price Parity source data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-11. Rankings measure the published cost-of-living index only; we don't recommend where to live or rate any metro's quality of life.